Florence Unified School District

1. Approval to sell 2 FUSD properties in San Tan Valley (Prop 402)
2. $98M FUSD Bond (Prop 401)

• There is no need to build schools there due to the large number of schools in the area
• The land sale is expected to bring $15-25M in proceeds 

• They go into the School Plant Fund, which is mainly for big projects like building, repairing, or improving schools.

• By using these funds for capital expenses, the district can free up other money to support everyday operations like staff and student programs.

• The funds can also be kept in reserves to help cover future school facility needs.

Bonds are loans made to the school district used to purchase capital items and make capital improvements to existing facilities, such as building or renovating a school or purchasing school buses. 

The Florence Unified School District Governing Board has called this bond election to provide the necessary funding for construction of new and additional facilities for the District, at its existing schools. The special bond election will also provide funding for the acquisition of new student buses and replacement of technology, building repairs, safety and security upgrades, and sporting tracks and facilities, and all other district needs related to students, classrooms and departments.

FUSD has nearly 1.5 million square feet of building space to maintain

The bond will fund:

• Necessary maintenance - not luxuries
• Modern upgrades are needed as technology and school security has changed:
  • Updated secure entries
  • Digital vs. Analog Fire Alarm systems and PA systems
  • Metal detectors at High Schools and Middle Schools

The District is requesting issuance of bonds to generate funds for the following proposed purposes:

• Renovating school buildings
• Purchasing pupil transportation vehicles
• General and preventative maintenance on all buildings
• Improvement of all school grounds, including adjacent ways
• Improvement or replacement of major systems that have outlived their useful lives for safety and security
• Replacement of technology, furniture, fixtures and equipment related to students, classrooms and departments
• Liquidating indebtedness incurred for the purposes set forth herein
• Paying all architectural, design, engineering, project and construction management and other costs incurred in connection with the purposes set forth above
• Paying all legal financial and other costs in connection with the issuance of the bonds.

• New School Buses to sustain and replace fleet for 10 years.
• Upgrades and additions of cameras to all buses to standardize. 
• Wireless download for cameras, no more pulling tape!
• Bathroom fix in Florence

There will be a formation of a Bond Citizen oversight committee to provide input and accountability. 

Land Sale = $0 (all proceeds are paid by the land buyer)

Bond =

• Renters- $0
• Homeowners- $0.4549 per $100 of Net Assessed value
  • Average Home Assessed value in FUSD = $168,820
  • Average monthly cost over 20 years = $6.40
  • Average Daily Tax Rate = $0.21
    • The cost can be compared to about 1 big mac or a coffee a month
  • Declining Secondary Tax Rate- The amount of property tax that residents pay to repay the bond is expected to decrease over time.

Our Capital Budget is very limited, this is the budget the state allocates for the district to maintain and replace buildings and equipment.

We have over $100M in current capital needs and are allocated approximately $5M per year based on our current enrollment to address capital needs. 

• MOST of these needs are due to the 20-25 year age of almost all of our schools. Just like your home, this is when roof, paint, AC, and other NECESSARY maintenance is required

• Annual capital allocations are also required to cover technology and device replacements for students and staff as well as support all adopted curriculum expenses across the district.
  • These two core items use a substantial amount of the already insufficient funds each year leaving little to no funds to maintain educational spaces.

Florence Unified School District is pursuing the special bond election to address current needs on aging buildings and educational spaces. The primary objective of these funds is to maintain the educational spaces that our community has funded over the past 100 years to ensure those buildings are properly maintained and continue to serve students for the next 20 years and beyond.

• Possible reduction of positions
• Possible increase of class size
• Possible salary/hourly freeze
• Possible reduction in student transportation
• Possible reduction of student laptops
• Possible reduction of buildings

AZ Voter Information for the 2025 November Election:

• Voter Registration Deadline is October 6th 
• Ballots drop on October 8^th
• Mail-In Deadline is October 28^th 
• Election Day to Drop Off Ballot is November 4^th 

You can check and/or update Arizona Voter Registration using the AzMVD website by: Visiting the following link  

This election is mail-in by OR drop off only at a polling place, some FUSD schools will serve as polling locations.